2 Minutes With ... Armen Haghnazarian, Founder of Okperfect

Armen Haghnazarian is a multifaceted creative director with a passion for art, design and digital innovation. Long a player in the entertainment marketing space, Armen has led departments and held senior posts at various agencies. During those tenures, he worked on dozens of major tentpole campaigns before branching out on his own.

Haghnazarian founded Okperfect in 2019, an L.A.-based creative studio with a small team and the confidence to produce for clients like Warner Bros. and Paramount+. Other projects include blockbuster franchises Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Justice League and more.

We spent two minutes with Armen to learn more about his background, his creative inspirations and recent work he’s admired.

Armen, tell us …

Where you grew up, and where you live now. 

Los Angeles.

How you first realized you were creative.

I learned how to play the doumbek and sing Armenian folk songs when I was 2. My family got a big kick out of it and I’m sure I did as well.

A person you idolized creatively early on.

Hip-hop and R&B producer Timbaland. Signature style and an oeuvre spanning decades—every creator’s dream.

A moment from high school or college that changed your life.

Getting my hands on Photoshop 4.0 back in ’98, right after high school. Shoutout to my uncle for that. 

A visual artist or band/musician you admire.

Visual: Rudolf Stingel. I’m a contemporary art nut and to me, there is none higher.

Musician: Danny Carey. One of the best technical drummers of this generation and by all accounts, a pretty great human being.

A book, movie, TV show or podcast you recently found inspiring.

Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain is something I’d recommend to any creative spending too much time in front of a monitor. We’re all going to have to pay the piper at some point, if we’re not already.

Your favorite fictional character. 

Logan Roy: “I love you all… but you are not serious people.”

Someone or something worth following in social media. 

I’m not going to try and be esoteric here, you need to follow us @thisisokperfect.

One of your favorite creative projects you’ve ever worked on.

Our first social campaign was for an indie horror flick distributed by WB called Snatchers (2019). Tiny budget but we went all out and the effort was rewarded. Very thankful for that first opportunity.

A recent project you’re proud of.

Last year’s The Batman. A dream campaign and a long way from Snatchers. Will always remember the phone call from WB awarding us this campaign.

Someone else’s work that inspired you years ago.

I spent three years creating silver nitrate paintings, thanks to Jimi Gleason’s work. Results were mixed (no pun intended).

Someone else’s work you admired lately.

The first look at Jerry Lorenzo’s collection for Adidas was impressive. Difficult to keep up with fashion and culture after having three kids but I’m trying to hold on for dear life.

Your main strength as a creative person. 

Ability to see, distill and learn—in any medium.

Your biggest weakness.

Patience, especially for the fraudulent. 

One thing that always makes you happy. 

My wife’s smile (she better be reading this).

One thing that always makes you sad.

Young creatives not prioritizing the actual fucking work. Everything you could ever want is right there in the work.

What you’d be doing if you weren’t in advertising.

An abstract artist with a very underwhelming CV.